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What's the one class at WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY every student should take?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
450
Elementary
DISTRICT 360 · STATE 344
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·WADENA-DEER CREEK SCHOOL DISTRICT·NCES 270002200431
WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY
215 COLFAX AVE SW, WADENA, MN 56482 · (218) 632-2400 · Wadena County
GRADES PK–04ELEMENTARY33-TOWNTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL450 STUDENTS
C
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 27% of Minnesota public elementary schools
- CTest scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- CBeats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded Minnesota public elementary schools
Student : Teacher
11.1:1
40 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 17.4:1 · STATE 13.7:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
52%
235 students
DISTRICT 44% · STATE 48%
Community
5
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 41 | 9% |
| Kindergarten | 82 | 18% |
| Grade 1 | 84 | 19% |
| Grade 2 | 79 | 18% |
| Grade 3 | 86 | 19% |
| Grade 4 | 78 | 17% |
This year's kindergarten class (82) is 5% larger than its 4th grade class (78).
Student demographics
25%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 25% · STATE 60% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
School pathway
Students here typically continue to
Based on grade levels within WADENA-DEER CREEK SCHOOL DISTRICT. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
MCA 2024-25 . % Meets or Exceeds StandardsEnglish Language Arts
30.9%
MN avg 49.7%
Math
46.6%
MN avg 45.3%
What this means: On the MCA, Minnesota's statewide test, about 31 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 47 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Minnesota schools, those numbers are about 50 and 45.
Source: MCA. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
36.0%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
37.0%
based on MN schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-1.0pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 36% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 37% typical for Minnesota schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Minnesota's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY
WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY's state test result (36.0% proficient) is higher than 0 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY this school | 450 | 52.2% | 36.0% |
| MESABI EAST ELEMENTARY AURORA | 470 | 49.8% | 41.3% |
| FALLS ELEMENTARY INTERNATIONAL FALLS | 425 | 50.1% | 42.7% |
| FRAZEE ELEMENTARY FRAZEE | 453 | 47.9% | 46.9% |
| RIVERSIDE ELEMENTARY BRAINERD | 407 | 57.5% | 44.9% |
| EAST CENTRAL ELEMENTARY FINLAYSON | 391 | 49.4% | 40.5% |
Matched among Minnesota elementary schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Minnesota |
|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 36.0% | #588 of 844 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 46.6% | #491 of 844 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 30.9% | #694 of 844 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 450 | #382 of 1,130 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 11.1:1 | #102 of 769 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 25.5% | #625 of 796 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 52.2% | #306 of 942 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +4.9% | #169 of 244 |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
450
+16 (+4%) vs 2020
-30% since 2000-01, when it was 645
Student : Teacher
11.1:1
was 11.1:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 450 | 40.4 | 11.1:1 | 52% (235) |
| 2023-24 | 464 | 38.4 | 12.1:1 | 61% (281) |
| 2022-23 | 449 | 36.5 | 12.3:1 | 62% (278) |
| 2020-21 | 434 | 39 | 11.1:1 | 42% (184) |
| 2017-18 | 429 | 37.7 | 11.4:1 | 60% (258) |
| 2015-16 | 429 | 34 | 12.6:1 | 57% (245) |
| 2010-11 | 543 | 38 | 14.3:1 | 59% (319) |
| 2000-01 | 645 | 49 | 13.2:1 | 47% (301) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY.
Since 2017-18: students up 5% (429 to 450); teachers up 7% (37.7 to 40.4).
About WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY
WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY is an elementary school with a street address in WADENA, Minnesota. The student body numbers 450 students, from pre-K through 4. An average school in this group (elementary schools in Minnesota) has about 344 students.
WADENA-DEER CREEK SCHOOL DISTRICT has 3 schools; together they serve 1,079 students.
WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY's enrollment is 86% White. After that, the student body is 5% multiracial, 5% Hispanic, 2% Native American, and 2% Black. For comparison, Wadena County is about 87% White. Pick two students at random and there is a 25% chance they belong to different racial or ethnic groups; that figure is the school's diversity index.
The school reports 40.4 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to about 11.1 students per teacher. That is 2.6 students per teacher below the 13.7:1 average for elementary schools in Minnesota. Free or reduced-price lunch eligibility covers 52% of students. For comparison, public schools in Wadena County average 49%.
The allk12 Grade for WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY is C. Compared with Minnesota public elementary schools, the school scored higher than 27% on a mix of test scores, poverty-adjusted results, and recent trend.
The model predicts 37.0% for a school in Minnesota with WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY's free or reduced-price lunch share. WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY posts 36.0%.
In Wadena County (population about 14,256), the median household income is $61,467, 20% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and about 9% of people live in poverty. WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY is one of 17 public schools in the county.
Of nearby public schools, WADENA-DEER CREEK 5TH AND 6TH GRADE is the closest, at about 0.3 miles. WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY has 7 other public schools within five miles. Nearby schools with test data average 33.6% proficiency; WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY posts 36.0%.
The NCES locale for WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY is Town: Remote, which covers schools in a town far from an urbanized area.
Compared with 2020-21, the school had 16 more students in 2024-25.
Discussion on this page can cover school events, clubs, and volunteer needs. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.
Wadena County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
14,256
Census ACS
Median income
$61,467
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
20%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
9%
Below federal line
Schools in county
17
3,201 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in WADENA-DEER CREEK SCHOOL DISTRICT
- WADENA-DEER CREEK SENIOR HIGHHigh · 470 students
- WADENA-DEER CREEK 5TH AND 6TH GRADEMiddle · 159 students
Other schools in WADENA
- WADENA-DEER CREEK SENIOR HIGHHigh · 470 students
- WADENA-DEER CREEK 5TH AND 6TH GRADEMiddle · 159 students
- Freshwater Education District ALCHigh · 101 students
- EARLY CHILDHOOD SPECIAL EDUCATIONElementary · 64 students
- LEAF RIVER ACADEMYCombined · 15 students
- White Pine AcademyHigh · 11 students
Nearby schools
- WADENA-DEER CREEK 5TH AND 6TH GRADE0.3 mi · 159
- WADENA-DEER CREEK SENIOR HIGH0.3 mi · 470
- Elm Tree Academy1.5 mi · 9
- White Pine Academy1.5 mi · 11
- EARLY CHILDHOOD SPECIAL EDUCATION1.5 mi · 64
- LEAF RIVER ACADEMY1.5 mi · 15
Frequently asked questions
About WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARYHow large is WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY?
WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY enrolls approximately 450 students in grades PK-04.
Is WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY an elementary, middle, or high school?
WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY is an elementary school covering grades PK-04.
What is the student-teacher ratio at WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY?
The student-to-teacher ratio at WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY is approximately 11.1:1 (40 FTE teachers).
How diverse is WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY?
WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY reports a student body of 86% White, 5% Hispanic, 2% Black, 5% Two or more.
Is WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY public or private?
WADENA-DEER CREEK ELEMENTARY is a public K-12 school, overseen by WADENA-DEER CREEK SCHOOL DISTRICT.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.